Between the crumbling edge of a great bottomless chasm and the wolves shredding cloth and flesh from your back the choice between grand visceral suffering and the void of instantaneous death are offered as a chance to put any truly -felt- philosophy into action. Do you plunge into the numbness of nothingness and submit, or feel every second of fibrous electrical panic as you fight a warriors knowing death? At the very precipice of death complacent men of today are guaranteed no such choice; They are knowingly defeated by the sudden realization that their instinctual denial of obviate machinated insignificance was merely in jest of the lacking culture they’d propagated for a lifetime. Shriveling within institution while clutching at cross or enfeebled religious literature there is no effective weapon in facing death and mortality as a pill-slugged, desk-bent husk. To see the bigger picture of a mediocre death after a similarly mediocre life is no great motivator for any man, either, and as such those of us enlightened to the obvious simply stew within an occasionally optimistic nihilism and esoteric spirituality; At least hoping to see the actual destruction of mankind before the ailments of sedentary blandness topple us. In this numbing state there are few things more exciting than heroically realized extreme metal art in its demonstrative and early formal stages of development. Vancouver, Canada quartet Omnipotence embody the duality of existence beyond perception as they expose the brink of their ambitious vision with ‘Praecipitium’.

One could sit and ponder the scale of all known extant life and matter for a lifetime and retain no communicable value to others simply because human perception is rife with illusions created to combat our evolutionary limitations. We blur and discolor light to see, our subconscious lies to create memories, and worst of all we turn away from information beyond capacity. In creating fitting tribute and subtle personal nuance within the traditions of Scandinavian semi-melodic black metal in the early 1990’s, Omnipotence refocus the lens of ‘old school’ European blackened death metal towards the historical reality of those styles. Not a cheap manufactured semblance or a modernist updating of the style but a beauteous ‘riff’ upon the sardonic melodrama of an era still relevant today. Anti-cosmic in tone but cumulative in spirit, ‘Praecipitium’ offers a great mirrored sonic continuum, a cleansing vitality for those who struggle with the limited perception of the human apparatus.

Although the regal thrash informed apices of “Paths of Oblivion” do suggest the finer works of Necrophobic up front, the majority of the record operates between Dissection influenced textures akin to the works of Black Horizons and particularly evoke the sort of contemplative melodrama of Vinterland. When their spirits pick up and swords are raised, Omnipotence begin to approach a most regal form outside of the Scandinavian character towards the German and French (non-symphonic) interpretations of the early 2000’s. Perhaps too outwardly melodic to compare to Astriaal‘s venomous brutality, when Omnipotence turn to forceful riff to balance the occasional melodic overload they truly excel.

If given the chance to set this record next to recent albums from Thron and Uada it might appear as the less refined, but more authentic, ‘old school’ expression among the group. This is both an argument for the potential that Omnipotence hold but also sets sight upon the limited value of reshaped melodic black metal ideas that do not form impactful melodic statements. Instead the black dust of heavy metal’s greatness crumbles from their shoulders without feeling grand in statement, this is perhaps what ‘Storm of the Light’s Bane’ has over most any album that touches upon its influence. Nonetheless fans of the olden ways of Scandinavian melodic black/death metal ideas from the early second wave will find this an authentic expression in service to great inspiration and well-balanced professional sound. Highly recommended. For preview I believe “Beyond the Boundaries of Being” and “Paths to Oblivion” generate greatness and “Lethiferous” showcases some light banality.

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